North Seattle homicide victim — and her suspected killer who was fatally shot by police — identified

Originally published February 13, 2019 at 5:43 pm

Irma Rodriguez Vaquedano, 48, died from multiple sharp force injuries and her death was ruled a homicide. Danny Rodriguez, who is not related to Rodriguez Vaquedano, is the 34-year-old who was fatally shot by two Seattle police officers in a North Seattle apartment.

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The King County Medical Examiner’s Office on Wednesday identified the woman who was killed in a North Seattle apartment last week along with her suspected killer, who was fatally shot by two Seattle police officers.

Irma Rodriguez Vaquedano, 48, died from multiple sharp-force injuries and her death was ruled a homicide. Danny Rodriguez, a 34-year-old who is not related to Rodriguez Vaquedano, died from multiple gunshot wounds, according to death investigators. Both died Feb. 7.

North Precinct patrol officers were dispatched to investigate a possible domestic-violence incident at an apartment building in the 10500 block of Midvale Avenue North just before 3:30 a.m. on Feb. 7, police said at the time. Officers forced open the door of a third-floor apartment and found a woman dead inside.

The department released video captured by two officers’ body-worn cameras later that day. The video shows the officers yelling at a man to get down and drop a large knife. The man initially complies, belly-flopping onto a mattress on the floor in a bedroom visible from the front door.

As the officers train their guns on the man and tell him not to move, they apparently see the female victim’s body as they clear away the broken door. “She has her head cut off,” one officer is heard saying.

Over the next couple of minutes, the officers continue to yell at the man not to move, but he eventually gets to his knees and gestures to the officers, as if trying to shoo them out of the apartment, the video shows. One officer admits he doesn’t understand what the man is saying, and both officers repeatedly say they are “policia,” according to the video. Policia is the Spanish word for police.

The man suddenly stands up and appears to quickly pick up the knife, which he then appears to wave around while moving toward the officers, the video shows. Both officers open fire, and the man falls down onto his back.

Det. Patrick Michaud, a spokesman for the Seattle Police Department, said he doesn’t know the relationship between the man and the woman. He said additional details about the homicide and officer-involved shooting aren’t likely to be released until the investigation is completed.

A man, a woman, and two young children were found unharmed, hiding in another bedroom, police said at the time.

At the request of the Seattle Police Department, the King County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the fatal officer-involved shooting.

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